


We Rally Together

by minishadowsoul



Series: Family Means Your Problems Are Our Problems [2]
Category: Descendants (2015), The Isle of the Lost - Melissa de la Cruz
Genre: Ben does not know how to handle this but handles it well, Everyone is adorable and awkward, F/M, Gen, Mention of the female menstrual cycle, Mentions of period symptoms, The Isle Four treat each other like the family they wanted
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-08-16
Updated: 2015-08-16
Packaged: 2018-04-14 23:41:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,261
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4584654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/minishadowsoul/pseuds/minishadowsoul
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Something is going on, and Ben is going to find out what. Because he is the king and these people are his friends. And he can handle this. No, really, he can and will handle this. Even if everyone smirks at him and tries to handle their problems all on their own. </p><p>Or the one in which everyone helps Mal deal with a problem and Ben solves everything with an awkward, off-screen phone call.</p>
            </blockquote>





	We Rally Together

**Author's Note:**

> My first official fic! Yay! I should not be allowed to write while under the influence of period cramps. I have no beta and am writing this on a tablet. If you actually read the entire thing, then I thank you. You are awesome and deserve all of the snacks of your choice.

It was the little things Ben noticed, at first. 

The Isle teens constantly watched everyone, studying their movements and patterns. Evie watched out of curiosity and wonder. Carlos watched with a bit of fear, always slightly tense and ready to dodge, even after all this time. Mal generally looked aloof and confused at the way the Auradon raised teens acted. (Not that the other three weren’t just as confused. Mal just tended to look more confused than the others) Jay was very good at pretending not to look, but his fingers always twitched when he was actually scanning the crowd, and Ben was certain that before his coronation, those twitching fingers had delved into pockets and bags with barely a second thought.

Nowadays, Jay simply watched and tapped out mindless tunes on his legs, the table, his books, and occassionally Carlos’s shoulder or notebook. Today, however, Jay wasn’t tapping anything at all. His fingers still twitched, and he kept his head bent down, as if studying his text book instead of the crowd. No one else seemed to notice how still the teen had gotten, and just when Ben was about to get up and ask what was wrong, Jay stood up and shut his book with a dramatic sigh.

“Carlos and Evie are better at this stuff,” he said as an explanation to his teammates. Two of them were absorbed in a debate about arithmatic and how it was going to help them in real life and another was squinting at a literature text book. All three of them murmured distracted goodbyes as Jay left.

Ben was probably the only one that noticed Jay swiping a chocolate bar from an unattended table. The inhabitants of the table had left at least five minutes before, but there were still papers, pencils, and one lone candy bar left behind. The chocolate bar found its way into Jay’s pocket, and the former thief (who apparently still had some habits to break) kept up his normal strut out of the room. He even stopped to answer someone’s question about last week’s tourney game. On his way out, his hand drifted near a girl’s purse, but Ben was pretty sure Jay didn’t actually steal anything from it.

Ben frowned and made a mental note to talk to Jay about bad habits…..right after he finished reading the budget report his advisors had sent him that morning.

~*~

The Isle teens were quite often found together, or at least were never very far apart, but for the past two days, Evie had hardly left Mal’s side. Whenever someone tried to talk to Mal, Evie asked a question or pointed something out, forcing that person’s attention on her instead of her friend. She’d even done it to Ben on several occassions. It was never anything too blatant, and Mal never got upset by it. Evie just asked questions about things that had happened in class, kingdom protocol, any gossip that might draw someone’s interest, or simply spouted compliments until everyone’s attention went from Mal to something else.

Every few minutes, she’d place a hand on Mal’s shoulder or arm. She was quieter than normal and sometimes rested her head on Mal’s shoulder, murmured something too soft for anyone else to hear, and didn’t move again until she’d gotten a grumbling response. If Mal needed something (or Evie thought she did), she would stand and get it or sweet talk someone else into getting it for them. More than once, she’d actually shoved Mal back down in her seat, her hands gripping her friend’s shoulders and pushing until Mal relented and settled back into her seat with a huff.

She also gossiped far more than normal. She asked about hair styling tips, about make up, about nail polish, about anything and everything that made most of the boys at Auradon Prep scatter to the four winds. Those discussions always ended in hushed whispers that no one outside of the huddle of girls could make out. By the end of the huddle, Mal’s eyes always flared green, and she hissed something at Evie then dragged her friend away. Evie was never upset by it. She just smiled, patted Mal on the arm, and gave her some candy. 

She also made sure Mal was never without a warm cup of….something. Ben thought it might be hot chocolate as that was what he smelled whenever he bent down to give Mal a kiss on the cheek. Mal grumbled at him more than usual, these past few days, but she always gave him a shy smile so he knew his affection wasn’t unwelcome. Evie was the one who gave him a bright grin, as if she were proud of him for something he’d done, and made sure to give him a hug or a pat on the arm, and, once, one of the strawberry muffins she’d just admitted to recently making. 

He thought maybe the Isle teens felt homesick and made another mental note to do something that made them feel more comfortable and welcome at Auradon Prep. 

~*~

It wasn’t at all unusual to find Carlos in the library. Despite library rules, Dude was usually at his side, but the librarian didn’t seem to mind the mild rule breaking. Ben thought that was for the best. Carlos was always more relaxed whenever Dude was curled up near him. If Carlos snuck Dude snacks, well, everyone ignored that. Dude was a clean and polite dog, all things considered. 

It wasn’t a rare sight to see Carlos surrounded by science books, either. Noramally, he kept his interests towards engineering, a bit of chemistry, anything that helped him understand the electronic devices that were so familiar to the Auradon raised teens, and, of course, anything involving dogs. Once or twice, Ben had greeted him and spied bare glimpses of books titled things like “1001 Ways to Remove Stains!” or “Not Everything Is Cut From the Same Cloth: Laundry Tips for Your Castle.” Ben could always tell when Carlos read those sorts of books because he hunched over them, looked warily around every page or so, and kept a tight grip on the book itself, as if expecting someone to tear it away from him.

Which was why Ben was surprised to see more than one Biology book on the table when he went to greet Carlos. Since Ben always greeted Dude first (Carlos was far less jumpy if Dude was used as a buffer instead of Ben speaking to him directly), Carlos was able to deftly mark his place in the text, close it, and turn to give Ben a somewhat shy greeting by the time Ben looked at him. Ben pretended not to notice the spare sheet of paper Carlos stuffed into a pocket. 

“Hey, Ben. Just…studying in case of a pop quiz or something,” Carlos explained, gesturing toward the somewhat small pile of books on the table.

“It’s Saturday,” Ben pointed out. “Aren’t there other things you’d rather be doing?”

Carlos’ eyes widened slightly, and he rubbed the back of his neck with one hand. Ben imagined he was trying to remember if he’d forgotten to do anything or if Ben was just trying to be friendly. 

“No…time like the present, right?” Carlos said hesitantly, paused, then frantically added, “I didn’t miss tourney practice, did I? I thought that wasn’t until….” He trailed off and checked his watch, tension draining out of him when he noticed it was still late morning and not early afternoon. 

“No, no. I was returning a book and thought I’d say hi,” Ben replied with a sheepish grin. He hadn’t meant to make Carlos uncomfortable, but Carlos was still twitchy around people in a way most of the other Isle teens weren’t. Or maybe he just wasn’t as good at covering it up. He glanced around for a change of subject. Anything was better than Carlos standing there as if half expecting Ben to shove him for no reason at all. Ben grabbed a book off the top of the stack and flipped through it. “Plants native to this region? Planning on writing a paper on the scientific properties of certain plants? Or are you guys making another potion and need to know where to find your ingredients.” 

He thought he’d managed a joking tone, but Carlos actually flinched and went a bit pale.

“Uh…just…you know…curious. Never been anywhere but the island before, you know? And Jay asked- I mean Evie wanted to know- I mean…I’m totally late for this thing with Mal. I’ll see you later,” Carlos said hurriedly as he shoved his things back into his bag. He pulled his bag over his shoulder and stumbled his way away from the table without another word, moving as fast as he could without drawing (even more) attention.

Okay. Even Ben had to admit something was up, by now. He hadn’t made Carlos that nervous since he’d explained that dogs were usually quite tame and adorable creatures. Under the table, Dude yawned, stretched, then ambled off after Carlos. Ben was pretty sure Dude didn’t just give him an accusing look. After all, he hadn’t done anything to deserve that, had he?

He definitely needed to figure out what was up, and Mal would be the first one he’d ask to see if anything was wrong.

~*~

Mal and Evie weren’t in their room, and no one had seen them on campus for hours. It would have worried Ben, but he’d already known the Isle teens were good at sneaking around. He also knew they tended to hole up in either the boys’s room or the girls’ room, especially when one or more of them felt particularly twitchy. Usually, they chose the boys’ room. He remembered Mal saying it was easier to defend the last time he’d asked. He hadn’t pressed the issue after that. Sure, it was against the rules, but he doubted any of the Isle teens were ready to explain their reasoning to him. He had the feeling he really wasn’t ready to know.

Jay cracked open the door when Ben knocked, and though Ben couldn’t see past his teammate, he could hear some of Mal’s favorite music blasting through the room. He figured a spell of some sort was involved in keeping the noise from bothering anyone while the door remained closed. 

“Sorry. Study session,” Jay said before Ben could get a word in edgewise and tried to close the door. His words would have held more weight had he not had a game controller in one hand and a slightly guilty look in his eyes. It was one of the few tells they had, and it was hard to pick out. Ben didn’t even know if they looked guilty when they lied to him because of his relationship with Mal (and therefore his automatic inclusion to their group) or because they felt, well, bad for being bad.

Ben slammed a hand on the door before it could close, shoving a foot between the door frame and the door for good measure. He’d ever been more glad he’d inherited at least a little of his father’s beastly strength. Some things never faded, even once curses were broken. 

“If I promise not to get you guys in trouble, will you please tell me what is going on?” he pleaded and almost let out a quiet roar of relief when Jay glanced behind him. Ben didn’t hear a word of what was said, but a few moments later, Jay’s shoulders slumped and he moved aside so Ben could enter the room.

Evie sat with Carlos on his bed, both of them quietly arguing over a textbook next to a pile of what appeared to be all of the pillows and blankets in the room. Carlos would point to something then point to the scattered array of what seemed like miscellaneous objects on the bed, and the two would whisper back and forth. Ben was pretty sure they weren’t doing homework, but whatever they were debating seemed very important. Someone, probably Carlos, had dug up various plants and placed them in whatever containers they could find. There were a few mugs, what looked like one of Evie’s smaller purses, and even a shoe filled with dirt and sprouting various bits of greenery. A small mound of sweets, including the pilfered chocolate bar, had been piled in front of the pillows and blankets, and a bunch of objects Ben couldn’t quite make out had been laid in careful rows in front of the pile of blankets and the two teens.

Jay shut the door behind Ben then moved to check on whatever was brewing in a kettle on a table that had been moved near the bed. Where in the world had they-no, it was probably better that Ben didn’t know, and if anyone mentioned one was missing, he’d just quietly pay for a new one.

When Ben moved closer to see what the objects laid out in rows on the bed were, he spied a hand sneak out from the folds of the pile of blankets, snag a candy bar, then disappear then. That must be where Mal was. He was just about to say something when his brain caught up with the visual imput and told him just what the various objects on the bed were.

He blushed bright red and tried to ignore Jay’s snickering. A former thief the tourney star might have been, but he was still observant as ever.Jay’s snickering made Carlos and Evie glance up, and a moment later they, too, were quietly laughing at him. The only person not laughing at him was Mal, and that was probably because she couldn’t see what was going on. The snickering only lasted a few seconds before a muffled whimper was heard.

Jay hurriedly poured a cup of…something and moved to the bed, almost colliding with Ben in the process. They both reached the bed at the same time, and while Ben wasn’t quite sure where to sit or stand, Jay had no problem with crawling onto the bed and holding out the teacup. Evie reached into the blankets to pet Mal (or at least Ben thought she was petting her) and murmur something soothingly, while Carlos grimaced and glared at the book he and Evie were pouring over.

“What’s wrong?” Ben asked. He never felt more useless than when he didn’t know what to do. His eyes flicked to the various objects spread out on the bed, and he felt his cheeks flame once more. “Is Mal…er…that is to say…um…”

“Has she turned into a werewolf, do you mean?” Carlos asked, finally glancing up from the book to smirk at Ben. His smirk faltered a bit at Ben’s confusion, and he added, “That’s what my mom called it. When she still had her menstrual cycle, that is. ‘I’ve turned into a werewolf. You’d better do what I say or I’ll maul you.’” He mimed clawing at someong with his hands and bared his teeth for a moment before he too blushed. “As if I wasn’t already terrified of dogs.”

“My mom always just laid in bed for days and cursed Snow White,” Evie said softly. “Or Maleficent, when we were banished. The vultures rarely delivered the necessary supplies in time. She never let me do that. I had to practice making blank faces for hours to avoid wrinkles. Then if the pain made me too pale, there was the reapplying of blush and foundation and…..well, things were different on The Island.” Unlike Carlos, Evie didn’t blush, but she did avoid looking anyone in the eye. Her shoulders slumped, and she scooted closer to the pile of blankets that was Mal so she could attempt to cuddle with her.

Jay poked what Ben assumed was Mal’s knee until Mal reached out to grab the teacup. Somehow, the teacup managed to find its way underneath the pile of blankets without spilling. Jay gave the pile a grin and sat back, as if waiting for a verdict. “Mal was never more like her mother than this time of the month, back on The Isle. Always grumpier and nastier,” he admitted, and Ben realized the three of them were telling him what was going on without actually telling him what was going on. He was still getting used to that. 

“This tastes like bog water,” came Mal’s muffled mumble from underneath the blankets. Still, when she handed back the teacup, it was empty. 

Carlos pulled out a notebook that had been stuffed underneath the textbook and made a note on it. “Tell us in fifteen minutes if it actually does anything to make you feel better. Jay, start on Mixture Four in the spare kettle in case this one doesn’t work,” he ordered, frowning at his notes then tilting the notebook so Evie could look at it too.

“Well, that one worked, but that one didn’t so maybe…..” Evie said and trailed off when Carlos started making even more notes. 

As usual, it took a minute for Ben to realize what was going on. It wasn’t like he was slow. He just….the habits of the Isle teens were so different from the people he was used to. Plus, it was rare anyone actually got to see just how much they helped one another out. If one had a problem, it became everyone’s problem, and now that they weren’t focused on taking over the world….

“You know, there’s….medicine and stuff for…for…that….time of the month,” Ben pointed out, grateful that he’d managed to avoid stammering, at least. This was not the sort of thing they’d really covered in class. Intellectually, he knew about the female menstrual cycle and the side effects it may have, but it was one thing to know and another thing entirely to see Mal accept meddling help from her friends and not even give a token protest. Instead, she was curling into Evie’s side, and Ben was certain he heard another quiet whimper. “Didn’t the Fairy Godmother explain, er, how things were done here? In Auradon?”

“Pfft, if it was anything like the talk she gave me and Carlos, it was next to useless,” Jay grumbled. He sniffed experimentally at whatever mixture he’d put into the second kettle (and now that Ben was paying more attention, he noticed at least four of them on the table, each one emitting steam). “Where does everyone get all their girly stuff, anyway? I had to resort to swiping stuff from princess’ bags.” He paused and looked a tad bit guilty for that. “I’ll put, like, candy or something in there to pay them back later,” he added.

“I-“ Ben started, then cut himself off. What could he even say to that? He’d feel bad if he lectured Jay about stealing when the former (sort of) thief was admitting to stealing stuff because he had no other choice. It wasn’t like he or the other three were going to ask an faculty member for help. They were even less likely to flat out ask another student for help. It was a thing Ben had been working on them with, but they still had a long way to go. It was a miracle they’d even allowed him into the room. Carlos had gotten sick a few weeks ago, and no one had even known until he’d showed up a few days later after missing an entire day and a half of class. (It was probably a good thing Carlos had gotten sick during the end of the weekend)

“I’ll go get help,” Ben decided on saying and was already halfway to the door when Jay grabbed his arm to stop him. He turned around in time to see part of Mal’s head emerge from the blanket cocoon. 

“Don’t,” she croaked, and she looked so afraid and miserable Ben could only nod in response. He must have still looked dubious because she added, “I’ll be fine in a few days. It’s nothing to worry about.”

Evie, Carlos, and even Jay echoed the platitude. Though, Jay escorted Ben to the door and murmured, “Try to get us more of the plant with the weird blue flower. I don’t want to send Carlos out alone for more of it, but the roots really seem to be working.” As if any of that was something normal people said.

The door shut behind Ben with a quiet click, and he ended up standing there for a good five minutes before he decided on a proper course of action.

~*~

Three hours, an embarrassing phone call to his mother, an even more embarrassing attempt to assure the Fairy Godmother that everything was okay, and a visit from a smirking Cogsworth later, Ben once again knocked on Jay and Carlos’ door.

Jay actually let him in this time without a word. Though he did stare at the covered basket Ben carried with him. He didn’t ask questions, just sat on the edge of the bed, broke off a piece of muffin, handed it to Mal (who was still covered in blankets but whose head and hands were at least visible now), and smirked. 

Carlos was still absorbed in his notebook, but whatever he was muttering was too quiet to make out. Evie sat behind Mal, this time, and was very gently brushing her hair and singing something soothing that sounded vaguely like Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. 

“I come bearing gifts,” Ben announced and held up the basket. Everyone gave him a blanket stare so he cleared his throat and continued. “I, er, asked my mom for help about these sorts of things, and I never want to have that conversation again so she’s going to come by personally to talk to you girls about…whatever questions you may have. She offered to have my dad come by to give you two a similar conversation since clearly the school assumed things it should not have,” he paused to motion to Carlos and Jay who both looked horrified by the very idea of the former King Beast giving them The Talk.

Ben grinned. He hadn’t wanted to imagine that Talk, either. It had been bad enough the first time his father had stumbled through it. Hearing his mother sort of stumble through it then immediately move into fact mode so she could help him out….yeah, he could have done without that conversation. 

“Buuut if you guys have any questions, I’ll answer them, and if I can’t answer them then I’ll….figure something out that doesn’t involve my father trying out any birds and beens metaphors. Trust me. No one wants to hear that.” Ben really, really hoped Jay and Carlos didn’t have any questions he couldn’t answer. 

“Coach tried to give me that talk,” Jay admitted with an amused grin.

“He did?!” Carlos actually dropped his pen and looked vaguely offended.

Jay nodded and looked smug. “There were diagrams and everything.”

Before the conversation could turn into a squabble, Mal blurted out, “You talked to your mom about periods for me?” She sounded completely baffled and entirely too fond. The beginnings of a smug smirk were already on her face. 

Judging by the look on Evie’s face it was clear the only thing keeping her from making a high pitch squeal was her love and respect for Mal (and Mal’s eardrums). “That’s so sweet,” she said instead, managing a slightly high pitched whisper instead of a squeal. 

“I figured no one wants to get that talk from the Fairy Godmother,” Ben said and sat on the edge of the bed so Evie and Mal could go through the basket. “It’s a basic care package, apparently, and Mom said she put instructions…”

Evie already had her hands on the envelope and was reading the contents intently. Carlos was reading over her shoulder, looking even more interested than Mal. “They have stuff that does that?” he asked in an awed sort of whisper.

Jay gave the both of them a fond look and stole a small piece of chocolate from Mal’s pile of sweets. “I do not know how you can stand to read that, man.”

“All knowledge is useful,” Carlos replied. “We have to be prepared for Evie in a week.”

Jay groaned and buried his head in his hands at that. “I completely forgot. Please tell me there’s something other than that awful smelling tea.” He snatched at the papers in Evie’s hand, stopping only when Mal slapped at his arm. She didn’t hit him, but her eyes flared bright green. 

“There’s a fund for basic supplies for you guys,” Ben told them and didn’t mention that he, his mother, and the Fairy Godmother had just created it. “I can show you how to access it and find out what stores deliver and……….”

Okay so spending his afternoon alternating between studying and finding out way more than he ever wanted to know about managing period symptoms wasn’t exactly the way Ben had thought his weekend would start. But he supposed he couldn’t complain. He was helping his new friends, had learned a lot about them, and it didn’t look like they were going to kick him out of the room even after the stars came out. 

And Mal had pulled him between her and Evie so she could use him as a pillow instead of her friend. Yeah. He definitely couldn’t complain about that.


End file.
